An interview with Rasmus Tønnies
According to Rasmus Tønnies, Partner at ARC Contract Management, interest in CLM has surged across the Nordic region in recent years. Technology vendors, consultants, and buyers are all feeling the uptick in demand—and the pressure that comes with it. “There’s a lot more executive interest now,” he says, “but that also brings higher expectations. And not everyone is ready for what it takes.”
That readiness gap is one of the core challenges. Many organizations underestimate the complexity of CLM implementations. They see the promise of automation and AI, but don’t always have the people, processes, or structures in place to make it work. Compounding the issue is a shortage of experienced professionals—on both the client and consulting sides. As project volumes increase, that talent gap risks undermining adoption and long-term success.
What makes the Nordic picture distinct, though, is how these challenges intersect with regional culture and legal frameworks. For one, civil law systems like Denmark’s place a strong emphasis on behavior in legal disputes. Courts don’t just look at what the contract says—they look at what the parties actually did. That raises the stakes for post-signature execution. As Rasmus puts it, “You can have a great contract, but if you don’t live by it, it may not hold up in court.”
This legal reality is shifting the focus. In the Nordics, there’s a growing recognition that contract management can’t stop at signing. Execution, compliance, and ongoing performance management are becoming central. In contrast, many common law jurisdictions still concentrate heavily on pre-signing negotiation and risk allocation.
The Nordics also benefit from being, in many ways, digital by default. Public and private sectors are highly digitized. There’s strong infrastructure, and the workforce includes a large proportion of digital natives. This makes the adoption of CLM technology more intuitive than in regions where digital transformation is still catching up. It also helps that labor costs are high, creating a powerful incentive to automate repetitive tasks wherever possible. For many Nordic organizations, CLM isn’t just a back-office function - it’s a strategic tool for efficiency.
Still, technology alone isn’t enough. One of the most striking observations from Rasmus is the role of collaboration. “In Denmark, cross-functional collaboration is second nature,” he explains. “People are not so reluctant to bring legal, procurement, and operations into the room. It often happens naturally in larger CLM implementation projects.” This culture of inclusion may take longer to reach decisions, but it results in smoother implementations. The effort to align isn’t seen as a barrier—it’s part of how things are done.
That cultural maturity also shows up in how long organizations are willing to nurture transformation. Many CLM projects take a frustrating number of years to develop, and it can be hard to maintain sustained executive sponsorship. But in the Nordics, teams often stay the course. General resource constraints for involving internal specialists, along with a lack of internal ownership during the project and in daily operations after implementation, continue to be some of the most evident threats to success. Rasmus attributes Denmark’s rapid rise in CLM maturity to a mix of internal persistence and external support—from firms like ARC, and from the attention that’s been provided over many years by WorldCC (formerly IACCM). This has led to the growth of a vibrant community, creating a mix of grassroots and top-down momentum which is beginning to bear fruit. Success in Denmark is also starting to be reflected in heightened interest and awareness elsewhere in the Nordics, as evidenced in a recent roadshow organized by WorldCC and ARC.
Looking ahead, the conversation naturally turned to AI. The tone here was largely optimistic. While some industries fear automation, the sentiment in the Nordics is that AI is more ally than threat. With more work than people to handle it, AI is seen as a necessary enabler—especially for managing large volumes of contracts and extracting intelligence at scale. That said, Rasmus cautions against getting caught up in hype. “Without clean data, good processes, and cross-functional buy-in, AI won’t deliver. It’s not a silver bullet—but it is the missing piece.”
Ultimately, the Nordic experience offers lessons that go beyond geography. It highlights that successful CLM implementation isn’t about choosing the right tool—it’s about building the right ecosystem. That includes legal frameworks, digital readiness, cultural norms, and above all, the human relationships that bring it all together.
Rasmus was in conversation with Tim Cummins, Tara Bevan and Cinthia Navarez Martin from WorldCC.
Rasmus Tønnies - Partner, ARC Contract Management
Rasmus is a Partner at ARC Contract Management, a fast-growing contract management and CLM consulting firm based in Denmark. Like many others in this field, Rasmus didn’t start in contract management. Trained as a lawyer, he discovered the world of contract and commercial management while working at one of Scandinavia’s top consulting firms. From there, he co-founded ARC, which has carved out a niche helping clients redesign contracting processes and implement enabling technologies. With a growing Nordic and international client base, ARC is one of several forces shaping how CLM is evolving in the Nordics.